The eponymous label of Kyiv-based formation Rhythm Büro has announced the anniversary release ‘There Will Be Light’. It contains tracks by 17 Ukrainian and foreign electronic music producers, including Sebastian Mullaert, Anthony Rother, Artefakt, AES Dana, Priori and John Beltran. The compilation will be released on December 8 on two vinyl records and two weeks after that — on streaming platforms. don’t Take Fake Magazine spoke to the label’s team and tells more about the release
The compilation, which they have been working on for three years, focuses not on dance music, but on more calm music, primarily on chill-out and ambient music. ‘‘There Will Be Light’ aims to be a deep listening experience of ambient music and to give listeners a sense of peace and calm in challenging times’, the release description reads. One track from the record, Sail Among Your Suns by American producer bvdub, is available for listening.
— You’ve been working on this release for three years. How did the idea for it come about?
Igor Glushko: The idea of such a compilation was born a long time ago, perhaps even before Covid-19. I paid attention to the fact that ambient (I use this word for lack of a better alternative term, meaning non-danceable electronic music) was gaining popularity again. But at the same time the quality of many modern releases was very ‘fleeting’: it was music that could not claim timeless status, but rather was something secondary and not super important by default.
I wanted to reproduce the atmosphere of the chill-out rooms at the raves of the 90s, even though I have an intuitive understanding of it, because I didn’t get to experience it physically due to my age. But I love a lot of musical works from that era. I thought it was important for music to leave some kind of cultural trace behind it, and not just get lost in the background of a million other releases. With these thoughts in mind, I started to use an abstract description of the concept, chose some reference tracks and began writing to some artists I knew with an offer to participate in the project.
At that moment I didn’t have a clear understanding of how many tracks would be in the release or what deadline I had to finalize it, but I wanted it to have music that would give me mental peace and help me cope with everyday troubles. The very first finished track was a composition by bvdub, an artist I’ve been a fan of for a long time and with whom we’ve been chatting for the last ten years, not super active, but still.
— How did a full-scale war affect the recording process?
Igor Glushko: In general, the war affected the project in two main ways. Firstly, I put it aside for a while, because right after February 24 I didn’t want to listen to any music at all. And secondly, against the background of an apocalyptic emotional state I allowed myself to add some compositions to the compilation, which may not have been as anti-anxious as I had planned to make them at the time, but purely musically and emotionally they fit what I was experiencing at those moments. In general, I’m not the kind of person who lets impulsive decisions change plans, but in this case I went along with what fate offered.
After all, the musical component of the project was ready in February this year: I had 17 tracks by Ukrainian and foreign artists. Then I worked with a well-known in certain circles German graphic designer Alex Solman to prepare the artwork, and in parallel I solved technical issues such as mastering and production of vinyl copies. The final result will be in December — it seems to me that it took almost four years to move from the first idea to the finish line.
— But this release from the beginning was more about calm music rather than fast and hard music, right? Or did the idea undergo changes in the process?
Igor Glushko: The idea was originally about calm music. Even in the description of the concept for the artists, I specified that any curtsy towards dance music would not be appropriate here. I informed all participants that I reserved the right to veto a composition if I felt it was conceptually inappropriate. That’s why I’m also very grateful to some of the artists who understood my scrupulosity and pedantry in this matter.
There were some transformations, as I already mentioned when answering the previous question, but I wouldn’t say that we deviated too much from the original idea. It’s not so much deviation as certain elements of impromptu.
— Are there any new names in the release that you would like to show to the listeners? And how did you choose the artists for this compilation?
Igor Glushko: There aren’t many truly new names on the release: although most of the artists will be appearing on Rhythm Büro for the first time, they are certainly not newcomers. Artists such as John Beltran, Sebastian Mullaert, Anthony Rother and AES Dana, for example, have semi-legendary status in their niches of the electronic scene. The release also features artists who have only recently begun to gain international fame, such as Canadian Priori and Ukrainian Volodymyr Gnatenko. Among those who I discovered during the preparation of the release are Arthur Mine from Kyiv and Vida Vojic from Sweden. Artefakt’s Robin Koek drew my attention to the latter. By the way, Vida Vojic’s track is probably my favorite in this project.
— And a few words about the life of Rhythm Büro today. You have started holding events in Kyiv, but in a more chamber format. A more chamber format compared to what you were doing before the full-scale invasion.
Vera Logdanidi: Given the current military situation in the country, Rhythm Büro cannot operate at full capacity. But at the end of this summer things got better. For the first time since February 2022 we decided to hold a party in Kyiv. Conceptually, we moved away from the classic large-scale non-club format towards a completely opposite direction — a small cozy concept with one guest and a conscious refusal of grandeur. Two such events took place with the participation of our friends — Italian Marco Shuttle and French artist Zadig. This is a kind of consolation for us and our community, as well as, besides all the other ways we use at the first opportunity, an additional attempt to collect donations for the Ukrainian Defense Forces.
Tracklist:
A1 — AES Dana — Ab Initio (Pax Edit)
A2 — Vera Logdanidi — Breathing Curtain
A3 — Priori — Top Soil
A4 — John Beltran — Nothing Stays the Same
B1 — Na Nich — That Was A Long Day
B2 — Saphileaum — Calm Seas
B3 — Artefakt — Tides
B4 — Anthony Rother — Victory Of Light
C1 — Vida Vojic — Show Me Beauty
C2 — Johanna Knutsson — Vemod
C3 — Volodymyr Gnatenko — Aards
C4 — Asyncronous — Hegelian Dialectics
C5 — Arthur Mine — Sequoia
D1 — Sebastian Mullaert — Just This
D2 — bvdub — Sail Among Your Suns
D3 — Zavoloka — Posvit
D4 — Nikolaienko — Hiking in Hydra
How to order?
The cost of the record ‘There Will Be Light’ — 900 UAH. If you live in Ukraine, you need to fill out this form to pre-order. Orders will be sent after December 15 every week. If you’re in Europe, you can order the release at this link.
On December 8, the debut EP ‘Banksia’ by producer and co-founder of Rhythm Büro Vera Logdanidi will be released on vinyl (we will tell you more about it soon).
